New York City Museums That Stay Open Late

While New York City has a bar and restaurant scene famous for going around the clock, there are also many museums that keep their doors open into the evening, giving visitors cultural alternatives that last past happy hour:

This institution extended its hours the first Saturday of every month to 11 p.m., giving visitors across the city plenty of time to trek out to Brooklyn to see a collection that includes Judy Chicago’s famous Dinner Party installation, featuring table settings for noteworthy women throughout history.

The must-see at this modest museum is the McKim Building, a majestic 1906 residence that houses the vast personal library of magnate J. Pierpont Morgan. The building just reopened after a thorough renovation, and it, along with the other wings of this museum, provides a fascinating glimpse into the world of early-20th-Century wealth. Open until 7 p.m on Fridays, the museum usually has a string quartet playing in the main hall.

Cosmetics king Ronald Lauder made waves when he spent $135 million to purchase a Klimt painting of Adele Bloch-Bauer for this gallery devoted to German and Austrian art and design. The rest of the collection is equally lustrous, with luminous Expressionist paintings and sleek Bauhaus decorative pieces. On the first Friday of each month the museum is open (and free!) from 5 to 8 p.m.

This stack of steel boxes on the Bowery looks particularly striking on Thursday nights, when the museum is open late. Admission is pay what you wish from 7 to 9 p.m., which means visitors will be free to contemplate the merits of this adventurous collection.

MoMA turns into an indoor Times Square on the first Friday evening of every month from 4 to 8 p.m. when admission is free to New York City residents. While the crowd is dense and slow moving, there is a carnival atmosphere that brightens the already exceptional collection. For visitors, there isn't a free option, but hours are extended until 7 p.m. every Saturday.

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